Swimming spots near Edinburgh
15 swimming spots within 30 km of Edinburgh, 15 of them designated bathing waters monitored by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Nearest first — the closest is Wardie Bay, about 4 km away.
6 carrying a caution. 9 with no current pollution alert. 4 rated Excellent under the EU Bathing Water Directive, which describes four seasons of samples rather than today.
- Wardie Bay3.5 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Portobello (West)4.5 km from EdinburghCaution
- Portobello (Central)5.4 km from EdinburghCaution
- Fisherrow Sands7.3 km from EdinburghCaution
- Burntisland11.8 km from EdinburghCaution
- Kinghorn (Pettycur)12.2 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Aberdour (Silversands)12.6 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Kinghorn (Harbour Beach)12.7 km from EdinburghCaution
- Aberdour Harbour (Black Sands)12.7 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Kirkcaldy (Seafield)15.8 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Seton Sands16.9 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Longniddry18.0 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Gullane23.5 km from EdinburghGood to go
- Yellow Craig28.2 km from EdinburghCaution
- Broad Sands29.0 km from EdinburghGood to go
Browse the wider area
Common questions
- Where can you swim near Edinburgh?
- 15 sea, lake and river swimming spots lie within 30 km of Edinburgh, spread across 1 area. This page lists them by distance from the town rather than by county, because a boundary is not what decides where you drive.
- What is the nearest beach to Edinburgh?
- Wardie Bay in Scotland, about 4 km away. It is the closest of the 15 listed here; the next few are within a short drive and each shows its current status, so the nearest is not always the one to pick.
- Is the water clean near Edinburgh?
- 15 of these 15 spots are designated bathing waters with published monitoring, from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Monitoring covers bacterial quality only — it says nothing about tides, currents, swell or cold-water shock, and nothing here is a clearance to swim.
- Which spots near Edinburgh have the best water quality?
- 4 of them hold Excellent, the top classification under the EU Bathing Water Directive, based on bacterial samples across the previous four bathing seasons. That describes a four-year record rather than the water today — each spot page shows both.
- Can you swim near Edinburgh right now?
- 6 of the 15 are currently flagged, and 9 have no current pollution alert. These change day to day, so check the individual spot before you travel.